Happy Easter Early!

It's been much too quiet here in blogland-everyone has been too busy to write and for me, there hasn't been much going on. Until last week that is...I found out that I had been approved for an early retirement due to disability and retired officially last week. It had been a tough decision to make. My oncologist had suggested I should apply in January. Although things have been going well, as she put it."there is a good possibility that we'll be walking down this road of recurrence again." Given the side effects I endured this summer and the continued treatment and blood clot, I decided I needed to follow her advice. It took 3 months, but I finally got the official ok (along with the medical documentation of 287 pages!) When I received the verdict I had mixed emotions. When you're working probably once a day (if not more!) you think I can't wait to retire-then when it happens-it's difficult. I resent the way it has happened--this cancer has had too much power in my life. But, I am going to look forward-this is just the start of the next part of my journey.
The other exciting news is that to help me start my next chapter, my best friend, Betsy, and her husband, Sted Seavey, have invited us to join them on their annual trip to Aruba! They have been going there for over 20 years now and this will be our second trip. We joined them in 2006 to celebrate the end of my first round of treatments and now we'll have something else to celebrate. They'll be staying 3 weeks, but we'll join them for one. We leave Easter Sunday and return the following Sunday. It's the perfect vacation--good friends, SUN (!!!) and a pile of books to read on the beach--after all this chemo, I'm ready for a little vitamin D therapy! Maybe I'll write an entry from the beach! If not, I'll be sure to include some pictures when we return.
Last week I also completed my second month on the drug trial I'm participating in. It's a double blind study of a new drug for ovarian cancer. So far so good--as part of the study I will have bimonthly Ca125 tests and CAT scans. My first were last week. My Ca125 was 7.2 (below 35 is considered "normal" yipee!) and my CT scan showed NO changes and was totally normal-with the exception of evidence that the blood clot in my lung is still there (the Dr. expected this). So it's all good! The only side effect I am experiencing is that I have totally lost of my sense of taste. It's really annoying and bizarre--everything I eat taste like a matzo cracker-you'd think I'd be skinny-but no such luck--I keep trying things to see if they taste! The doctors think this is probably an indication that I am receiving the drug-not the placebo since there haven't been any other changes in my treatment or medications-we'll have to wait and see-but if it works, I'll go without taste!
Because we aren't going to be here on Easter, yesterday we had an early Easter dinner at our house. Mom, Cheryl and Hank, and Andi and Dave joined us-Joanne and Mark had just returned from the Southwest on Saturday night, and Kit and Erin were in Aroostock county visiting Erin's grandmothers. Everyone is well and we all had a great time and a lot to eat! Maybe Cheryl will add some pictures--she took my camera home with her by mistake, so I can't. It was great for all of us to be together.

Well, that's all that's new in my world--hope everything is going well for all of you--think Spring! There are little green sprouts all over the front yard-daffodils and tulips! Maybe when we get home the flowers will be in full bloom! Take care! Nancy